Autonomous vehicles can improve the safety and efficiency of transportation systems. Autonomous automobiles, for example, rely on microprocessors and sensors to make routing and maneuvering decisions. As a result, in many cases, these vehicles can react more quickly and accurately to changing conditions than a human driver. Thus, autonomous vehicles can travel closer together and at higher speeds, for example, reducing congestion.
Many people suffer from motion sickness. This can be caused by the fact that the interior of the vehicle appears still, yet the person's brain senses vehicle motion. The symptoms may be reduced somewhat if the person looks out the window, which enables the person's brain to match the perceived motion with the movement of the scenery outside the window.
Unfortunately, for some people, motion sickness may be increased when riding in autonomous vehicles, trains, boats, and airplanes. This is often because there are little or no visual clues as to upcoming maneuvers. In the case of autonomous vehicles, this can be because these vehicles often have no visible steering wheel. In other vehicles, such as ships or airplanes, this may be because the controls are remotely located from the passengers in a cockpit or wheelhouse. Motion sickness may also be increased as the result of the potentially rapid movements or changes in direction caused during collision avoidance or due to vehicle programming. Regardless, it can be difficult for passengers to anticipate maneuvers, increasing the incidence of motion sickness.